Can you believe this crap?!!!!
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www.kfc.com/about/animalwelfare_guidelines.htm

KFC Poultry Welfare Guidelines (An Overview)

KFC has had an animal welfare policy for a number of years. In 2000, KFC adopted specific, comprehensive welfare performance standards for processing chickens and audits its suppliers against those standards. As shown below, KFC's processing guidelines and audits are designed to manage and monitor each step of the process to determine whether the birds supplied to KFC are handled humanely and any suffer-ing is minimized. KFC audits its suppliers for compliance, and non-compliance could result in termination of the supplier's contract. KFC's policies for its suppliers apply to all chicken intended to be sold to KFC. KFC's guidelines for its suppliers include:

PROCESSING GUIDELINES

General
Suppliers must have a documented program for animal welfare including a desig-nated program leader, formal employee training, and a system of regular self-audits and record keeping. Corrective action for suppliers' deviations from KFC's poultry welfare guidelines should be clearly stated and effective.

Birds arriving at the plant should be clean and in good health. If an audit reveals dirty or sick birds, corrective action at the grow-out house must be taken by the supplier.

Comfort and Shelter
KFC's guidelines call for its suppliers to house birds in shelters that are clean, well ventilated and protective. Temperature, humidity, ammonia levels, lighting and litter conditions should be continually monitored and maintained to maximize the comfort level of the birds. Birds should be free to roam throughout the shelters.

Catching
KFC's guidelines also provide that every reasonable precaution should be taken to minimize injury to birds arriving at our supplier's plants. KFC recommends that its suppliers implement an incentive program that rewards catching crews for minimizing injury if KFC's audit reveals that birds are being injured during the catching process.

Transport
KFC's guidelines call for transport crates to be in good repair. KFC recommends that there be no crate damage that would allow injury to birds or allow crates to accidentally open. Transport crates should not be over-filled and enough space should be provided to allow all birds to lie down.

Holding
Birds held in storage sheds by our suppliers should be provided adequate ventilation and climate control such as fans or curtains.

Stunning
Our suppliers' stunning equipment should be maintained to confirm that birds are insensible prior to slaughter, and the time between stunning and slaughter should be limited to minimize any likelihood that a bird may regain consciousness prior to slaughter.

Humane Slaughter
Slaughter equipment at all supply facilities should be properly maintained to confirm that the birds are slaughtered quickly.

KFC's FARM LEVEL GUIDELINES

In May 2003, KFC committed to the adoption of comprehensive industry-leading guidelines and audits for the humane raising and handling of poultry at the farm level.

KFC does not own or operate any poultry farms or processing facilities. Instead, it purchases chickens from, at any given time, approximately 16 different suppliers who collectively operate up to 52 facilities around the country.

The new standards adopted by KFC address the breeding, hatching and raising of poultry at the farm level. The standards were developed by leading animal welfare experts at the direction of the National Council of Chain Restaurants and the Food Marketing Institute. The standards address:

* Education and training of poultry supplier personnel: Suppliers must have a documented program for animal welfare including a desig-nated program leader, formal employee training, and a system of regular self-audits and record keeping. Corrective action for suppliers' deviations from KFC's poultry welfare guidelines should be clearly stated and effective.

* Breeding: Birds used to produce hatching eggs must be treated in a humane manner including access to feed and water. Suppliers must provide adequate space for the birds.

* Hatchery operations: Climate and sanitation must be monitored by suppliers in order to promote chick health and comfort. All processing systems must be designed, maintained, and operated in a manner that minimizes injury to the chicks. Beak trimming is not allowed for poultry that will be sold in our restaurants.

* Raising: Consistent with federal law, it is KFC's policy that its suppliers must not use hormones or steroids for any purpose, including to promote growth in their chickens, and our suppliers tell us that they are complying with this policy. Our suppliers tell us that in order to promote the health and well being of the chickens in their care, some chickens may, from time to time, be given medications (including antibiotics) under veterinary supervision to cure or prevent disease in the flocks. KFC's policy prohibits suppliers from using antibiotics to promote the growth of healthy chickens where such antibiotics are significant to human health. Our suppliers assure us that they are complying with this KFC policy.

* Proper nutrition and feeding: KFC's guidelines recommend that suppliers should formulate feed in order to deliver proper nutrition and promote the health of the birds.

* Appropriate comfort and shelter: KFC's guidelines call for a program to be in place at poultry farms to monitor climate control systems as well as have emergency procedures in the event of a power failure.

Members of KFC's Animal Welfare Advisory Council have endorsed these new standards and KFC's action. "I'm pleased that KFC is committed to adopting the comprehensive NCCR/FMI Poultry Guidelines and I look forward to working with the company on implementing these guidelines and training the KFC auditors," said Dr. Temple Grandin, Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University, a world-renowned expert on animal welfare and member of the KFC's Animal Welfare Advisory Council. Dr. Grandin has been engaged by KFC to assist with implementation of its farm-level guidelines and will continue to conduct announced and unannounced audits of its suppliers to monitor compliance.

For more information on some of our suppliers' animal welfare programs, visit the following:

www.perdue.com

www.tyson.com